Tag: religion

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High-control apostates

My thought of the day: high-control religions are likely to produce high-control apostates.

If you grew up with an extremely rigid and strict religion in your upbringing, you’re very likely to carry that forward into adulthood.

This explains people who leave the Church, and then insist that everyone who stays in the Church is obviously buying into every single interpretation that they themself believed. And it explains people who leave the Church and become, essentially, Fundamentalist Atheists. (This latter was very common during the ascent of the Four Horsemen of Atheism. All the online discourse about “Magic Sky Daddy” or “Sky Fairy” came from this kind of attitude.)

In reality, religion is a product of humans, and humans are varied and mutable. Someone can be a member of a religion you dislike without necessarily espousing every aspect of that religion that you dislike.

If you have left a high-control religion: that is okay. Just try to moderate your reactions to other people’s beliefs, and really analyze why you assume certain things about them.

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On Dobson

A friend’s priest had this to say, on the passing of James Dobson:

“On behalf of “strong-willed children” everywhere: There is no one I credit more for all my emotional and spiritual trauma than James Dobson.

I believe he is now fully in the presence of the radical love of God he so consistently preached against. My hope is that in the fullness of time he will be reconciled to that love.

In the meantime, sucks to be him.”

Imagine the torment it must be, to go your whole life believing in a God of hatred and exclusion, only to discover upon your death that your God is actually a god of love.

If hell is the absence of God? And this man is now feeling that absence, because God does not condone violence towards young children, the way Dobson does (well, did)? Then Dobson is in hell.

Good.

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It ain’t just a piece of paper

Reading this Reddit thread a little while back got me annoyed.

Someone in the comments (yes, I know, I know) was saying something like “is this (financial protections) really why people get married? What gold diggers!” Or whatever.

And my reaction? Yes, that’s why people get married! The entire point of legal marriage is, in fact, that “piece of paper” that gives you all the rights and privileges and protections and ability to file taxes jointly and whatever. That’s the only reason people get married and file a certificate with the state clerk.

The squishy emotional side of marriage doesn’t require a courthouse at all. You can go up to your favorite house of worship and have a ceremony there, without the legal side of this at all, whenever you want (and if you can convince the celebrant to let you renounce all the legal benefits; some won’t do that). You can have a party with all your friends and family that doesn’t involve the paper at all. Tons of folks do this if they elope and hold a reception later on, or whatever. The important emotional thing isn’t the legal paper; it’s the public promise in front of your friends and family.

The legal side of marriage? Is VERY important. And yes. It’s why people get married.

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The Genesis Cinematic Universe

This weekend, I was trying to explain Jacob and Esau to a friend who didn’t grow up hearing Bible stories (but was playing the video game Binding of Isaac nonetheless). And it occurred to me – we have the Hairy Ginger Lunk versus Clever Birthright Stealer dichotomy in another story: Thor and Loki.

I wish I was the first person to come up with this, but a quick Google shows me that I’m not. Still, though, I wanted to mention it, because it’s cool.